The University of Southern California and the LA Department of Public Health released preliminary study results that found approximately 4.1% of Los Angeles County’s adult population has antibodies to the coronavirus, estimating that between 221,000 adults to 442,000 adults in the county have had the infection.
This new estimate is 28 to 55 times higher than the 7,994 confirmed cases of COVID-19 reported to the county through early April.
This is exciting research. If correct, the data would mean that the county’s fatality rate is much lower than originally thought, between 0.1% and 0.3% instead of the projected 4.5%.
Although not enough people have developed antibodies yet, this is encouraging news for the development of herd immunity. If further studies confirm that the virus is less deadly than originally feared, the more likely it is that certain activities can be resumed sooner than expected for people in low risk categories.
Stay safe, stay strong!